In “The Memory Thief,” a strange and melancholy journey to the heart of madness, a rootless young man finds meaning in the horrors of a stolen past.

For Lukas (Mark Webber), a lonely Los Angeles tollbooth operator, life is literally passing him by. But when an irascible Holocaust survivor introduces him to the world of oral history, Lukas’s empathy quickly becomes obsession. Soon he is volunteering to tape survivor testimonies, purchasing a mezuza and prayer shawl and insinuating himself into the lives of a Jewish medical student (Rachel Miner) and her troubled father (Jerry Adler). Like a morbid variant on the celebrity stalker, Lukas has discovered his purpose.

Morally audacious and intriguingly original, “The Memory Thief” is the first feature by the playwright Gil Kofman and an attempt to counter Hollywood’s formulaic approach to the Holocaust drama. Using actual survivor testimonies, he confronts the ghoulish underbelly of the human impulse to sympathize, addressing our fascination with suffering in eloquent, often wordless scenes.

As Lukas sinks deeper into insanity, the film becomes an exploration of the way empty souls will fill themselves with whatever is at hand, even profound pain. For Lukas, a tragic identity is better than no identity at all.

THE MEMORY THIEF

Opens on Friday in Manhattan.

Written and directed by Gil Kofman; director of photography, Richard Rutkowski; edited by Curtiss Clayton; music by Ted Reichman; production designer, Marika van Adelsberg; produced by Mr. Kofman and Ms. van Adelsberg; released by Seventh Art Releasing. At Quad Cinema, 34 West 13th Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 255-8800. Running time: 1 hour 35 minutes. This film is not rated.